Combined toothbrush, tongue scraper and ear cleaner



June 7, 1966 KOU. c. YAO E'TAL 3,254,356

COMBINED TOOTHBRUSH, TONGUE SCRAPER AND EAR CLEANER Filed Aug. 51, 196420 INVENTOR.

1:0(1 a. YAO NANCY YAO ACI'TORNEY United States Patent M r 3,254,356COMBINED TOOTI-IBRUSH, TONGUE SCRAPER AND EAR CLEANER Kou C. Yao andNancy Yao, both of 11841 Wagner St.,

- Culver City, Calif. Filed Aug. 31, 1964, Ser. No. 394,103 1 Claim.(Cl. -111) This invention relates in general to personal hygienedevices, and specifically to a combination of a brush and ear waxremoving tool, jointly served by a common handle portion which alsoserves as a tongue scraper.

Personal hygiene among civilized people is considered to be a necessity.In most countries it is well recognized that teeth are both moreattractive and subject to less decay if brushed andcleaned.

The cleaning of wax from ear canals is a subject not often considered,because it is usually the opinion of both the layman and the medicalprofession that tools should not be inserted into the ear canal becauseof the danger of infection. It is, nevertheless, a common prac tice forpeople to use all sorts of instruments in their ears to relieve theitching sensation which occasionally occurs. Sometimes this itching iscaused by excess wax. Accordingly, a safe and efficient instrument forkeeping excess material removed is to be preferred over a random objectused on the spur of the moment. A proper instrument will encouragecleanliness.

Many people consider personal hygiene to include scraping ofaccumulations from the tongues surface. Dentists often recommend asevere brushing with a toothbrush. One method commonly accepted is ascraping tool used to draw over the surface of the tongue.

It is an object of this invention to provide three personal hygieneinstruments in one convenient instrument, each instrument serving a dualfunction.

It is a further object of this invention to provide a toothbrush havinga handle which may serve two further functions.

It is yet another object of this invention to provide a tongue scrapinginstrument having one end which may serve as an ear cleansing functionand the other end which may serve as a tooth cleansing function, butboth of which serve as handles for the tongue scraping device.

Also, it is an object of this invention to provide an ear cleansinginstrument which is devised to prevent damage to the eardrum, whileeffectively shearing away excess waxy material and accumulating thatmaterial within a collecting orifice.

In accordance with these and other objects which will become apparenthereinafter, the best mode contemplated for the present invention isdisclosed in the accompanying drawing wherein:

FIGURE 1 is a side elevational view of a combination personal hygieneinstrument embodying the three functions of this invention, with thetongue scraping position suggested in phantom outline;

FIGURE 2 is a plan'view from the bristle side of the instrument;

FIGURE 3 is an enlarged perspective illustration of the ear cleansingend of the instrument; and

' FIGURE 4 is a partial sectional view of the ear cleansing end.

In the drawing, the combination device of this invenr 3,254,356 PatentedJune 7, 1966 sible for the handle to yield in order to preventaccidental harsh treatment of the ear canal when the' end 12 is insertedinto the ear. bending of the handle into a curve in order that therectangular thin section produces four sharp corner edges along theentire thin section.v This is neither a knife edge or a knife blade, butis nonetheless an effective de' vice to scrape the tongue with maximumsafety.

The end 12, as best shown in FIGURE 3, is a blunt, rounded, ball-likeknob having an end surface 18 which is semi-spherical and safe to abuteven a delicate eardrum. This semi-spherical end surface, if projected,would define substantially a ball structure, although perhaps notcompletely unform as a true sphere. A true spheremay have a central axisextending in any direction through the center of the sphere. For thepurpose of describing the structure of the end 12, two perpendicularcentral axes of the end will be considered.

First, there is a central axis (Y) of the projected ball structure whichextends substantially through the center of the semi-spherical end andthis central axis lies substantially alongv the longitudinal axis of thehandle portion 14.

Then, a second axis (X) perpendicular to central axis (Y) may bereferred to as an axis in perpendicular relationship.

In order to protect the ear and to provide a shielded scraping action, alateral opening 20 is extended into the end knob from opposite sidesbetween the handle 14 and the semi-spherical forward end 18. The opening20 has a central axis (A) ofiYset in the direction of the handle 14 fromthe location of the cross central axis (X) of the projected ballstructure.

It may be said that the ear cleansing device is served by a handle inthe form of a toothbrush having a flexible tongue scraper sectionbetween the brush head portion and the knob 12. V

The combination of this invention may be made of many feasible materialswhich are available and can be used as desired according to function andprice. One of such materials which is acceptable is known aspolypropylene and is to be preferred in many instances because it is amaterial having high fatigue strength under repeated bending stresses.This material will probably outlast the bristles of the toothbrushportion in most instances.

This invention, therefore, provides a safe and sanitary means forperforming the operation of removing wax from the ear canal to reduceaccumulation and the resultant discomfort.

The rounded ball-like nature of the end provides blunt surfaces whichcannot harm the eardrum even if projected deeply into contact with theinnermost parts of the ear.

By placing the opening 20 offset to the rear of the center of theball-like end structure 12, a scraping opening is provided which willfunction whether the end is rotated or oscillated. In order to bestillustrate the function of the rim sunface of the opening 20, one mayvisualize the edges of two spoons which are joined or positioned back toback. This structure is not to be confused with such devices as priorart scoop or ear pick structures which do not provide the shieldedprotective structure as set forth in the present invention.

While the instant invention has been shown and described herein in whatis conceived to be the best mode contemplated, it is recognized thatdepartures may be made therefrom within the scope of the invention whichis, therefore, not to be limited to the details disclosed herein, but isto be afforded the full scope of the invention as hereinafter claimed.

Also, it thus makes possible the We claim:

A combined cleaning device, comprising:

a blunt, rounded, ball-like knob for cleaning the eat;

a handle attached to said knob, said handle having a longitudinal axis,said handle being in the form of a toothbrush having a flexible tonguescraper section between the brush head portion and said knob;

said knob having a semi-spherical forward end, said end having a sunfacewhich, if projected, would define substantially a ball structure, afirst central axis of said projected ball structure extendingsubstantially through the center of said semi-s-pherical end lyingsubstantially along the longitudinal axis of said handle;and

a lateral opening extending into said knob from opposite sides betweensaid handle and said semi-spherical forward end, said lateral openinghaving a central axis offset in the direction of said handle from thelocation of a central axis of said projected ball structure extendedsubstantially perpendicular to the said first central axis.

References Cited by the Examiner UNITED STATES PATENTS 11/1919 Gardner15-l67 1,893,524 1/1933 'Shanley l28304 2,049,956 8/1936 Greenberg 151llX 10 3,085,272 4/1963 Weichselbaum 15-187 X FOREIGN PATENTS 734,846 8/1932 France.

13,341 7/1894 Great Britain. 15 381,843 10/1932 Great Britain. 711,0176/1954 Great Britain.

DANIEL BLUM, Primary Examiner.

